Landis Fails Drug Test

Floyd Landis has tested positive for drugs. The test was done immediately after his amazing comeback ride on the stage to Morzine. You just knew that it was too good to be true, a ride like that.

Yes, there is the second test yet to be done while Landis and his representatives observe. And yes, we'll soon start to hear all of the theories as to why the first test was faulty, but I'll go on record right here and say that I am extremely disappointed but not surprised that Floyd is a doper.

If one rider does it, they all have to. In cycling it's, "Dope or no hope".

My wish is that Landis becomes the one rider who will finally stand tall and tell the world just how prevalent doping in cycling is. Name some names. Talk about doctors, team owners, team managers and sponsors who assist with doping or just turn a blind eye to the problem. Do I think that he will? Heck no. He'll talk about his 'ghost twin' like Tyler Hamilton did. And of course he's got that wacky hip condition that, while it obviously didn't slow him one bit on the Tour, is so painfully debilitating that he needed some pharmacological help just to get by. You can't blame a guy for that, can you?

The only real way to stop doping in cycling is for us customers to take our money elsewhere. Teams live through sponsorship dollars. Cancel our T-Mobile cellular service. Stop buying Trek bicycles. Only when the sponsorship money dries up will cycling be forced to change. It will follow the money.

I'll write more on this later (I need to get some work done).

Quick Update:

Why, oh, why would you lie to your teammates if you were innocent? Phonak rider and Landis teammate, Koos Moerenhout told the Associate Press, "I don't know any more than what I was told last night, that he (Landis) had trouble with his hip and needed to go to his doctor in Germany". Isn't that curious? Read more HERE.

Also in the linked article note how USA Cycling has denied for two days that they were contacted by the International Cycling Union regarding Landis' failed test. Fact: Landis failed the test. Fact: USA Cycling was notified. So the next time that USA Cycling denies something (or states anything else for that matter) don't believe them. They have now been shown to be capable of lying if it serves their interests. Fargin' sneaky bastages!

I was listening to NPR today and they interviewed the editor of Velo News. He said that while the ratio of the testosterone's in the human body should be 1:1 (as you can read HERE). Anything above 4:1 would fail the drug test. While reports indicate that Landis' ratio was above 6:1, the Velo News guy said that he has heard from numerous sources that the number was 11:1. So this isn't a simple case of a slight elevation in testosterone. This is huge. Maybe even big enough for a guy to pull back seven whole minutes in a solo effort against 100 other riders. Wait, isn't that what happened on Stage 17?

Go HERE and click around until you find the audio to listen to the Velo News interview.

That's right, I'm angry and I want to punch someone!

Landis had never ridden with anger or aggression before. His passionate, and unlikely, ride should have tipped us off that his aggression was chemically induced. And maybe all of that water he was drinking was to remove as much of the dope as possible so that he just might pass the drug test.

Another Quick Update:

It will be fun watching the Lance Armstrong Machine come to the aid of Landis. While Armstrong hates Landis and certainly was unhappy with Landis' Tour victory, he now has a vested interest in Landis appearing to be innocent of doping. Armstrong knows that if Landis were to admit to doping, or not put up an enormous fight, we would all take that as further evidence that Lance doped. Additionally, if Landis were to break down with guilt he would be more likely to rat on Lance. So watch with interest as Landis comes up with reason after reason for his testosterone discrepancy. Everything from what he was taking for that hip thing, to a single beer that he had, to dehydration, to some other medical condition(s) that he was being treated for. And watch the normally placid Landis become a bull in a china shop with attitude. He'll be getting the world's best advice from the master of the PR attack machine; Lance "The best defense is a good offense" Armstrong.

Landis and Armstrong now are fighting a common enemy; the truth. I expect that they will make a formidable team.